State police'll disintegrate Nigeria'ICPC pioneer chairman

The pioneer chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and former president, Court of Appeal, Justice Mustapha Akanbi, has carpeted the advocates of state police in Nigeria, saying, the idea would only lead to gradual disintegration of the country.Speaking with newsmen at a media parley to mark his 80th birthday in Ilorin, on Thursday, Justice Akanbi argued that state police is not an issue, but how government can put in place effective and committed police officers, who will serve Nigeria and not individuals.'I don't support state police, as it will lead to gradual disintegration of the nation. Those not thinking of a united Nigeria are the ones advocating for state police. So, when you divide the police, you will later divide judiciary, customs, immigration, and at the end of the day, there will be no Nigeria,' he said.An erudite scholar, who argued with the former Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) chairman, J.B. Dawodu, on his position on state police, said the lawyer lacked requisite experience for him to support state police.'J.B. Dawodu said that when we set it up, we can then study the parameters and see how we can put all through. You don't take such a dangerous risk. You should study the parameters first to see whether they are workable.'As far as I am concerned, I lived in the era when there was a local government police to effect tax payment and all that. I sympathise with him, as he graduated at the age of 20 and had a good life, but you don't. 'The state police is not an issue that bothers Nigerians now. What we need is an effective police, one with orientation and commitment to the nation and not individuals,' he said.
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